There’s a palpable chill in the air. The leaves are starting to show flecks of orange and gold. The nights draw and the sun gets up later. Winter is coming.

Thankfully, it’s still a couple of months away and we’ve got a cool autumn to enjoy first. That also means you have two full months to prep your garden and get it ready for the icy chills of December and January.

To help you along the way, we’ve collected seven of the best tips to keep your garden looking fantastic through the new year.

 

Autumn is the new spring

It’s true what they say, there’s no better time for a spring clean than the start of autumn. Well, okay, perhaps they don’t really say that but it’s still true. Before the frost sets in, the ground grows hard and your fingers turn blue, you have ample time to get your garden in order.

If you’ve painted or covered your greenhouse for some shade for the mid-summer sun, now’s the time to get it uncovered. While you’re at it, give your greenhouse a once over and check for broken panes, leaking gutters and trapped leaves.

When you’re finished your greenhouse should be a glistening beacon of glass and metal.

 

Replace the part-timers

By this time of the year, your annuals are probably wilting away. The best thing for them is a quick removal and a retirement on the compost pile. In their place plant winter bedding like panies or wallflowers for a burst of colour next spring.

Once you got everything where you want it, spread a thick layer of compost or manure and leave worms to do their magic.

 

Freshen up your lawn

After a spring and summer of barbecues, garden parties and football with the kids, your lawn might be looking a little worse for wear. Now’s the perfect time to get in there and give it a thorough going over.

Dig out any thatch with a rake, seek and destroy all moss, break up compacted soil with a garden fork and brush in a sandy dressing.

If you’ve got any bare patches, you could also think about laying new turn too.

 

Clean out compost bins

So much of autumn’s work is pulling out the old and replacing it with the new. With so much new material on the compost pile, you’ll need to free up some space.

Dig out last year’s compost and use it around the garden where you think the plants need a little more nutrition. Avoid using compost which isn’t fully decomposed.

 

Plant evergreens

A winter garden doesn’t have to be a dull affair packed with bare branches. Plant evergreens to provide a bit of backbone, body and colour through the cold months.

 

Save delicate species

With Scotland’s wet, cold and windy winters, even the most study plants struggle to make it through. Get delicate plants dug up and store them somewhere cool and frost-free over the winter.

 

Cover your pond

Keeping your pond clean is a nightmare at the best of times. With trees shedding their leaves, keeping the water crystal clear is even harder during the autumn and winter months.

If your pond is a manageable size, stretch a fine mesh net across it and pin the edges down with large stones. When the middle of the net starts to bough, gather it up and dump the leaves onto the compost pile.